What is the purpose of bread improver in baking?

The functionalities of a bread improver

An improver is used to improve the bread in texture (in baking terms, the tenderness of the bread), colour, taste and composition. A baker has to deliver fresh bread every day and when using auxiliary substances, it reduces problems in the baking process. A bread improver enables the baker to create a trouble-free processing and ease in dosing, even when facing a wide range of bread, the complexity of the baking process (kneading, first rising of the bread, preparation, second rising, baking, cooling, cutting) and the differences in skills of the employees.

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Fast production

Almost every traditional and industrial baker uses a limited range of equipment while baking a wide range of breads, running a number of recipes in sequence. If something goes wrong with one dough (for example, the dough is too sticky, has no or too much volume, goes dark or causes trouble when cutting), the remainder of production line also runs into trouble. This causes a number of lost production hours, and the bakery can&#;t deliver. In the Netherlands, we mostly consume freshly baked bread. The time between baking and selling is often less than 24 hours. Problems in the production line are disastrous for both baker and customer. That day is lost, and in the meantime, preparations have to be made for the next day.

What do bread improvers do?

Emulsifiers such as DATEM (E472e), monoglyceride (E471) and calcium stearoyl lactylate (CSL, or E482) have a positive effect on the processing quality, floury texture and tenderness. These emulsifiers ensure that the gas bubbles are trapped in the dough during kneading and rising and provide a nice floury texture. Emulsifiers can be left out, but this creates a technological risk because the &#;tolerance&#; of the dough decreases. This results in quality fluctuations and it affects how well the bread can be cut. Some bakeries can omit emulsifiers, others don&#;t due to the fact that their baking equipment cannot handle fluctuations very well.

Salt replacement

Bread improvers may also be used to reduce the quantity of another ingredient, such as salt. Salt has an effect on the taste, yet also creates a less sticky dough and a better development of the dough. A decade ago, we have demonstrated at the European Bakery Innovation Centre, Sonneveld&#;s open innovation centre, that we can reduce the amount of salt in bread while maintaining processing properties. Customers could not tell the difference in taste. This can be achieved by using enzymes and ascorbic acid (vitamin C; E300).

Cysteine and alternatives for smooth dough

Substances are used to make dough smoother, making it easier for the dough to pass the bread production line. In the past, bakers used cysteine, a structural component of proteins. The story goes that cysteine is made of human hair. This type of cysteine can&#;t be used, it has been banned in Europe since . Sonneveld only uses cysteine that is produced by fermentation. There is also an animal source of cysteine (pig hair or duck/chicken feathers); however, Sonneveld also does not use this type. The cysteine we use is purchased in Japan or Germany. Nowadays, as a result of discussions in the media and the wishes of our customers, we have replaced the cysteine in our bread improvers by enzymes or inactive yeast.

E-free products

Due to the large customer and consumer demand for E number-free products (and thus products with a clean label), we have developed a wide range of E number-free improvers. These include wheat fibre, betaglucan from oats and inulin from Jerusalem artichoke. A large part of the E numbers can be replaced by enzymes that split carbohydrates (amylase = starch splitting and hemicellulase = hemicellulose splitting), split fats (lipase) or crosslink proteins (glucose oxidase). Finally, improvers may also contain natural substances such as herb extracts (curcuma extracts for a yellow colour), malt for a darker colour, and nutrients such as vegetable fibres, vitamins and minerals.

Bread Improver has been a staple ingredient in bakeries for many years and offers benefits for every baker. If you lack variety in your equipment or are worried about the consistency and quality of your flour supply, it can help.

Since the art of baking began, there have been two things that bakers cannot control.

1. Once the bread has left the oven, there is no controlling the rapid ageing process of the wheat starch resulting in the toughening of the loaf. The threat of going stale means that freshly baked bread has had short life-spans for time eternal.

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2. The baker has little, if any, control over the quality of the flour they use. In times past, the ageing process would ensure this quality and this raw storage technique was paramount for the baker to create their best batches. But with time and efficiency becoming more of an issue, the storage time decreased, and then vanished.

If your bakery chooses to use bread improver, these age-old issues can become a thing of the past. Not only can you take back control of the baking process, but you can better master some tough challenges, even across your less experienced staff.

 What is a Bread Improver?

Improvers are mixtures of substances that each contribute specific functions in dough mixing, proofing, and baking of various bread and roll products.

It helps fight against inconsistency in batching and will help to prevent line stoppages caused by sticky or otherwise unusable dough. One poor batch can be the difference in making your quota, and perhaps even your profits for the day.

Bread improver makes the baking process more manageable.

 

What is in Bread Improver?

The most functional components of improvers are emulsifiers, enzymes, and flour treatment agents. Each ingredient provides technological benefits to the dough by interacting with the flour components. Some of these interactions complement those of others, so an improver needs to be carefully balanced to provide the correct characteristics in the finished baked product.

Enzymes are denatured during baking and are treated as processing aids, therefore they need not be labelled. Emulsifiers and flour treatment agents are E-number additives and must be labelled. Where a &#;Clean Label&#; product is needed, enzymes can be used to replace E-numbers.

For more Bakery Improverinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.